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3. (10 points) Briefly describe the three major classes of society and
their seven subsets.
The three major classes of society are upper-, middle-, and lower-class
divisions and they can further be separated into ultra-rich and wealthy
for the upper class; upper-, middle-, and lower-middle for the middle-
class; and for the lower-class they are separated into working poor and
poverty. The three major classes are divided by income with the
upper-class making $250,000 to over $1,000,000 a year. The middle
class income ranges from $35,000 to $250,000 and the lower class
makes under $35,000 a year. With such a wide range in income, the
classes are further broken down into sub-classes. The upper class has
two divisions: the wealthy, whose income ranges from $250,000 to
$1,000,000 and can develop savings and investments that will ensure
a good life. For the ultra-rich, their income is over $1 million a year
and they live a care free life. The middle class is broken down into
lower-middle class with salaries ranging from$35,000 to $60,000.
They need to be careful on what they spend their money on as they are
one step away from returning to the lower-income class. The middle-
middle class salaries range from $60,000 to $100,000, they have a
little extra to spend and are able to purchase the ‘fun’ items they want
without much worry. The third middle class is the upper-middle
class. They have a salary that ranges from $100,000 to $250,000,
financial investments become significant and ski trips, vacations in the
tropics and tours of Europe are affordable to them. Finally the lower-
class is divided into two classes. The poverty class has an income
under $19,000 and they do not enjoy the ‘good life’. Most do not
have full-time jobs; many are illiterate and school dropouts. Housing
is hard to come by and many spend 20 to 25 percent of their income
on rent and utilities. The people living in this social class are
economically, socially, and intellectually impoverished. Finally the
working poor’s salary ranges from $19,000 to $35,000 and are one
step away from the poverty class. This range of individuals typically
are on food stamps, live in government subsidized housing and rely on
government assisted medical care.